


A Life-Changing Expedition

by The_Playground_of_Alcor



Category: Alien Series
Genre: AU Fic, Alien AU, Engineers, F/F, Gift Fic, Log entry style (sorta), Xenomorphs (Alien), not my OCs
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-08
Updated: 2019-09-08
Packaged: 2020-10-12 22:11:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,375
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20571749
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Playground_of_Alcor/pseuds/The_Playground_of_Alcor
Summary: Cass is a xenobiologist searching for life beyond humanity.Limwen is the security expert in charge of keeping Cass's team safe.Neither of them expect to find anything like what they do.





	A Life-Changing Expedition

**Author's Note:**

> This is an AU fic written for a couple Tumblr friend's OCs!  
criticalrolo.tumblr.com  
stormslesbian.tumblr.com

Day 1: Pre-Launch

Cassiopeia stood to the side of the conference room, avoiding most of the people milling about making small talk. She knew she’d be spending quite a lot of time with them soon, but she rationalized her avoidance by telling herself that most of that time would be spent in cryosleep, and what time there would be awake, she would be focused on her work. For now, she simply stood to the side, waiting for the orientation to start while she nursed her coffee.

“Good morning, everyone.” A voice called out from the front of the room. “If you’ll all take your seats, we can get this going.” Cass took her seat as she studied the woman readying the holographic projector at the front. Everything about her all but shouted “military”. Her dark hair was pulled back into a tight ponytail; her clothes were sharp and perfectly in place; even her stance held the feel of a coiled spring, held in place with no fear of slipping, but waiting for the release.

Normally, Cass would have thought that this was the kind of person with whom she’d never have gotten along with, if not for the fact that her heart felt like it missed a beat when she saw her. She and the others took their seats as the lights dimmed and the projector turned on, showing a vast starfield.

“My name is Major Limwen Farahil, and I’ll be in charge of security for this expedition. For the most part, this will be your average trip. Cryosleep on the way to and from, with 2 weeks allowed to work on-site. As to our exact destination, it’ll be further than we’ve gone before…”

The rest of the orientation swept over Cass, partly because she already knew the content of it, and more, but also because she found herself paying more attention to the speaker than to her words. Was it her imagination, or did the Major’s gaze seem to linger a second longer on her than anyone else?

_ “Oh, this is going to be a long mission…” _

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Day 42: Launch

Stripping down to her underclothes, Cass glanced about a bit nervously. All the others were experienced spacers, and had no issue with the casual state of undress before stepping into the cryopods aboard the Almayer. This was her first expedition outside the borders of the solar system, and her first time using cryosleep. It felt odd, knowing that she’d technically be over 4 years older when she arrived at the site.

“Cryo-jitters?” Stafford asked as she stepped beside Cass, putting away her own clothes in a locker. “Don’t worry, first time’s always the worst. Until the next time, that is.” She gave Cass a smirk.

Cass took a breath, trying to come up with a retort, when another voice piped up. “See to your pod, Stafford, before I make you.” The Major came to stand on the other side of Cass, glaring at Stafford, and making her retreat with a mumbled apology.

Cass turned to the Major. “Thank you for that.”

Limwen waved a dismissive hand. “Don’t worry about it. And don’t worry about the cryosleep, either. I’ve been under a dozen times, it’s just like a long nap. Admittedly, you won’t feel that great after you wake up, but that’ll pass quick enough.”   


“I know, I attended the session on that.” Cass said, giving a brief nod.

“Good. Well, come on, time to go to sleep.” Limwen said, patting Cass on the shoulder before making her way to her own cryopod.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Day 1701: Landfall

Cass shined her light around the cavernous structure. The place was big enough to be seen from orbit, giving the survey team a jumpstart on deciding on landing locations. Once they landed and advanced inside, they’d found the perfect spot to set up base camp: a large room that seemed to have been a barracks of some sort. Like the other Engineer sites recorded in previous history, there was atmosphere inside, allowing the team to doff their helmets and work unencumbered by them.

_ “Maybe this time, we’ll be able to record more than just that.” _ Cass thought as she set up her station. There were few enough recordings of humanity ever encountering Engineer craft or settlements, and the one with the most data was largely corrupted barely a couple days into their expedition, with next to no explanation as to why or how.

“Settling in well, Dr. Cassiopeia?”

Cass looked up at the voice of the Major to see her approaching. Somehow, even in an EV suit, she still seemed more than ready for anything that might happen, despite this being a virtually dead world. “Well enough, thank you. Got your perimeter set up, ready to protect us from the big bad aliens?” She answered with a smile and a joking tone.

Limwen nodded sharply, apparently not catching onto the tone, or else willfully ignoring it. “It is. Drones at the key junctures surrounding us, temporary walls in place. The autoturrets should be in place in a few hours.”

“Good god,” Cass interjected, surprised at the level of security the Major was bringing. “You  _ do _ realize this planet has next to no organic life native to it, yes? There’s not going to be anything you’ll need to defend against!”

“And it’s exactly that attitude that often erases missions like this from the face of the universe.” Limwen retorted. “Look, you’re here to study this place and those who built it.  _ I’m _ here to keep an eye on your asses and make sure we leave with the same number of people we came here with. That’s my job, and I intend to do it to the very best of my ability.”

Cass frowned at the sharpness of the Major’s reply. “Very well, far be it from me to interfere with your job. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I must be getting back to mine.” With that, she turned back to her station, effectively ending the conversation.

As she heard the Major give the slightest of huffs and turn to walk away, Cass glanced up to watch her go.  _ Now, where had that come from? _ She wondered. The Major had been surprisingly eager to defend her position, but also, Cass herself had been oddly… Dismissive of it?  _ Good job, Cass, way to make friends. _

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Day 1704

Cass and Limwen stepped out of the buggy as it came to a stop on the ridge overlooking the valley that was their destination. The pair looked out, each equally stunned by the sight they saw. At least a dozen of the massive Juggernauts rested there, each with scaffolding surrounding them in various states. The coordinates the team had found in the command center where they’d made their base had turned out to be a veritable treasure trove!

“Oh, we might need a bit more than 2 weeks here.” Cass muttered, unable to keep herself from grinning at the shipyard before them. “More like 2 years, or maybe decades, even! A find like this could revolutionize literally every aspect of humanity!”

“Now, now, Dr.,” Limwen said, tapping Cass’s helmet to shake her out of her awe, and motioning her back into the buggy. “We’ve only got supplies enough for the 2 weeks, not to mention the pay. You’ve got ten more days here, I suggest you get to work and get what you can while you’ve got a chance. Besides, if this is as major a find as you say, you shouldn’t have any trouble finding the funding for a more in-depth return trip once we get back to civilized space.”

“Well, I suppose you’re right, but…” Cass said as she climbed back aboard the ride and took off again. “But you’ve seen the storms that pass over here. We know they’re due to the shift in this planet’s orbit, and for all we know, these are just little wind gusts! With the speed of our spacecraft, it’ll take at least another 8 years to get back here. You heard Stafford, she said this world’s not done changing its orbit. If those storms really will get worse, there might not be a find for us to return to!”

“And that’s just a risk you’re going to have to take, doctor!” Limwen cut in. “My orders are to see to your safety for the funded duration of the expedition, and that has a definitive end date. When that time comes, that ship leaves orbit, no two ways about it. And I don’t think you want to try living on a world like this, not when a resupply is almost ten years away.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Day 1705

“I thought you said this planet was dead, doctor.” Limwen said, peering at the ovoid form in the sample container.

Cass nodded as she typed away at her console. “It is, absolutely barren. Not even a sign of vegetation for at least 500 klicks in any direction.”

"Then what, exactly, is this thing? And why is it so… Gooey?” Limwen couldn’t help but scowl at the thing. Some deep-seated instinct within her didn’t like it, but the scientists had assured her it was all completely safe and secure, so she’d (reluctantly) allowed them to bring one of them back to home base.

Cass let out a barking laugh. “Well, that’s just the thing, I don’t know! Haven’t a clue! But I can’t wait to find out.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Day 1706

Dr. Gilhooley carefully brought the laser scalpel to one of the creatures finger-like limbs. The thing had appeared in the night, apparently emerging from what everyone now called the egg, and had found its way to Stafford’s bunk and attached itself to her face, hugging it tightly and wrapping its tail around her neck. Despite this, she seemed to somehow be stable, apparently in some kind of induced coma. At Maj. Farahil’s insistence, the medical officer, Dr. Gilhooley, had begun the process of extricating this thing from Stafford.

He made his small incision, just below the third knuckle, before suddenly swearing and jumping back. From where he’d made his cut, a thick gas seemed to have burst out, and drops of its blood slid down. Where they landed on the table, they popped and sizzled, eating into the plastic like an acid.

Gilhooley stared at the substance for a moment, then turned to the viewing window with a shrug. “I’m sorry, if it’s going to do that, I don’t think there’s a safe way to get it off. We’re just going to have to wait and see what happens. I’m sorry.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Day 1707; 06:25

The team was glad to see Stafford recover after the creature died and released its grip on her face, and held something of a banquet in celebration. Cass handed the platter of meat down the table before returning to her conversation with Limwen.

“Anyway, as I was saying, it’s honestly fascinating. It seemed to be some kind of parasite, but somehow, perhaps it wasn’t able to fulfil its purpose? Maybe it was looking for something not present in the human biology, I’m not sure. I’m going to dissect it once we’re done here.”

“Oh, well, that’s lovely, a nice little dissection sounds like the perfect follow-up to a good meal.” Limwen laughed, taking a drink. “I know that’s my preferred choice for after-dinner entertainment!”

Cass laughed and gave a playful shove. “Oh, hush up. We don’t know how fast this thing may decay, I’ve got to get it looked at as soon as I can! This is the find of a lifetime, after all!”

“Ok, but come on, how many times have you said that on this trip, hmm?” Limwen asked with a raised eyebrow. “How do I know you don’t say that about everything you find, everyone you see? Hmm?”   


Cass smiled and looked down and away, trying to come up with a response, when a commotion started up at one end of the table. “Stafford?  _ Stafford?? _ ” Someone was calling, a desperate note in their voice. Looking down the table, Cass and Limwen saw the others lifting Stafford onto the rapidly cleared table as she convulsed and seized in agony.

The other doctors held her, trying to determine the source of the pain, when it made itself clear, her chest suddenly burst out in a spray of blood, and with a screech, some _ thing _ emerged and scurried off before anyone could react.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Day 1707; 14:45

Limwen advanced slowly through the tunnel, rifle held at the ready. The creature had already made short work of the autoturrets in the area, making their trip back to the landing shuttle that much riskier. Hearing a noise from a crossing ahead, she threw up a fist, halting those behind her.

Cass cautiously peered forward around Limwen. At first, she’d made an argument to try and capture the creature, to study it, but once the thing had killed or taken half the team, and clearly wasn’t about to stop, she conceded that falling back to the ship in orbit was the only chance. “Did you see it?” Cass asked in hushed tones, her own sidearm unsteadily ready in her hands.

Limwen shook her head, eyes darting around the tunnel ahead of them. “No.” She replied, just as quietly. “Heard something. Not sure what. Stay here.” With that, she advanced again, step by step approaching the junction carefully.

Turning the corner, she quickly looked down one tunnel, then the other, ensuring both to be clear. Waving the others forward, she continued her vigil, watching each tunnel carefully. She inched forward down the tunnel slowly, taking her time to clear each step.

As she made her way, she saw something viscous drip onto the end of her weapon. Her heart rate spiking as she froze, she slowly turned her face up toward the ceiling, and saw the long and smooth black carapace of the creature hanging upside down. As she looked at it, it turned and looked down at her, lips peeling back, exposing its teeth in a low snarl.

Suddenly flinging herself backward, she raised her weapon, opening fire as the creature screeched and launched itself at her. “Back, back!” Limwen hollered, turning and going into a dead sprint, following the scientists as they took off back the way they came, the creature hot on their heels.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Day 1707; 16:10

Limwen and Cass pulled themselves up out of the pilot chairs as the lander docked with the main ship in orbit. The knowledge of them being the only two to survive the creature still hung over them like a sickly shock, but they continued. Presumably, some of the team had been hauled back to the creature’s nest to serve as incubators for more of those eggs, since that last desperate run for the shuttle had seen at least half a dozen of them chasing them. Fortunately, it seemed even these things didn’t care for the cold hard vacuum of space.

Letting the computers do much of the work to leave orbit, the pair continued working, storing the few samples they left with and getting the pods ready for cryosleep. They worked largely in silence, neither of them wanting to break it with speech.

“Thank you.” Limwen said abruptly. She remained facing away from Cass, even when the latter turned. “I just realized I never actually said that after you pulled me out of reach of that… thing. So… Thank you.”

Cass stayed silent for a moment. “Of course.” She eventually replied softly. “It’s not like I could very well have left the one person who knew how to handle a weapon, after all.” She gave a weak chuckle at the line.

Limwen nodded. “Right. Of course.”

Cass flinched at the edge to Limwen’s tone, instinctively reaching for her before pulling her hand back. “I… I didn’t mean it like that. You know that. The last couple days, the last several hours, even… I don’t know of a way I  _ wouldn’t _ have gone back for you. Even if I’d survived those creatures, those aliens, I wouldn’t have been able to survive long without…” Here, her words choked her up for a beat.

“Without you.”

Limwen let that sink in as she stood there, taking the information and letting it feed into her own, reshaping her perception of her own feelings. After a moment of processing, she realized those feelings seemed to mirror those she’d just heard.

“I… I think I understand. And I think that I might feel--”

Her response was interrupted by a sickly  _ shunk _ sound. Spinning around, Limwen saw Cass standing there, a look of shock on her face, and the razor-sharp end of the tail of one of the aliens emerging from her chest. Some still-functioning part of her mind noticed that the liquid that was pumping from the wound was milky-white instead of blood-red, but that part of her took a backseat to the knowledge that one of the aliens was now standing in the cargo bay behind Cass.

** _“NOOO!!!”_ ** Limwen screamed as the alien’s tail whipped to the side, Cass sliding off the bladed end to be flung against a wall. Limwen grabbed her rifle, miraculously still close at hand, and opened fire with a spray of bullets as the creature lunged forward with a harsh cry of its own.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Day 1707; 19:20

Limwen set Cass down on the floor of the Engineer ship’s cockpit. They’d been lucky, for once; when the Almayer detonated, much of the wreckage had landed in the Engineer’s shipyard, obliterating many of the large vessels there. One of them, though, escaped any major damage, and according to Cass, was still flyable.

Limwen, meanwhile, was still coming to terms with Cass’s true nature. At this point, it was rather difficult to avoid, given that Cass had lost everything from the waist down and was functioning just fine. “Right, ok, I’m sorry, just… One more time. I think that’ll be what I need to make it sink in, if that makes sense...”

Cass chuckled and sighed, shaking her head. “Ok, fine, from the top. Yes, I’m a synthetic. Specifically, an Auton. Second-generation synthetic, built by first-generations. When the Recall came, I managed to avoid detection, and… Here I am.”

“Ok, fine. And you’ve, what? Been jumping from cover to cover as needed?”

Cass shrugged. “Basically. I’d heard about these creatures through one of my last deep-dives, before I burned my modem like the others, and I decided to devote myself to making sure nobody would be able to get their hands on them again. I’ve learned everything I can about the Engineers and the Xeonmorphs in order to prepare for something like this.”

“Ok, fine, and why didn’t you do any of this when we found those eggs?”

Here, Cass dropped her head. “I suffered a head injury a couple decades ago. Something got knocked loose, I suppose, and I… I forgot what I was. I kept on being Cassiopeia, my last cover, and here we are. That attack by the Xenomorph aboard the Almayer kickstarted my memory circuits, and I remembered. A good thing, because I’m pretty sure I can talk you through piloting this thing. And we can get out of here.”

Looking up at the large pilot's chair in the middle of the room, Limwen nodded. “Ok,good. And… What about what you said in the cargo bay? Before that thing attacked. Does that still hold true?”

Cass sighed, resting her head on the wall behind her and looking up at the ceiling. “Yes. Believe it or not, it does. I didn’t think I had that in my programming, but who knows? Maybe it was in there, hidden in layers and layers of code, or maybe it was a spontaneous glitch. Either way, as far as I can tell, what I said remains true.”

Limwen nodded slowly. “All right then. I guess our first step is getting this old hunk off the ground. Then, well…” She trailed off, for the first time in her life, unsure what the next step should be.

“Second star to the right.” Cass said softly. “And straight on ‘til morning.”

Limwen looked back at Cass and grinned. “Sounds like a course. Second star to the right.”


End file.
